#russia

security

• Charter for European Security (1999) — Adopted at the OSCE's Istanbul Summit, this document was a major attempt to adapt the principles of the Helsinki Final Act to the post-Cold War era. It is the primary source for the principle of the 'indivisibility of security,' which is frequently invoked by Russia in its criticisms of NATO.
• Enlarging NATO: The Russia Factor (RAND, 1996) — A 1996 report that provides a political-military analysis of the dynamics of NATO enlargement, with a particular focus on the interaction between the West and Russia. It assesses Russia's foreign policy and defense strategy and proposes alternative approaches for the United States and its allies.
• Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation — Signed in 1997, this act established the basis for a new relationship between NATO and Russia. It declared that the two were no longer adversaries and created the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council for consultation and cooperation.
• French National Strategic Review (Revue Nationale Stratégique) 2022 — France's national security strategy, updated in response to the war in Ukraine. It identifies Russia as the 'main and most immediate threat' and reaffirms NATO as the 'foundation and framework of Europe's collective security,' while also strongly emphasizing the need for European strategic autonomy.
• Integrated Review Refresh 2023 (United Kingdom) — The UK's updated national security and foreign policy strategy. It identifies Russia as the 'most acute threat' to UK security and China as an 'epoch-defining and systemic challenge,' and commits the UK to a leading role in NATO.
• Joint Statement of the Russian Federation and the People — A joint statement issued on February 4, 2022, that outlines a shared vision for international relations. It opposes the further enlargement of NATO, criticizes the United States' Indo-Pacific strategy, and declares that the friendship between the two states has 'no limits.'
• Military Doctrine of the Russian Federation (2014) — This document outlines the official military policy of the Russian Federation. It identifies NATO's 'power potential' and 'global functions' as the main external military threat and details the conditions for the use of nuclear weapons.
• National Security Strategy of the Republic of Poland (2020) — This document outlines Poland's national security priorities. It identifies the 'neo-imperial policy of the Russian Federation' as the most serious threat and calls for strengthening Poland's defense capabilities within the NATO framework, including increasing defense spending to 2.5% of GDP.
• National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation (2021 Summary) — A summary of the key points from Russia's 2021 National Security Strategy. This document outlines Russia's view of the international environment, its national interests, and its strategic priorities, reflecting a confrontational stance towards the West.
• National Security Strategy of the United States (2022) — This document outlines the US approach to national security. It identifies China as the 'only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and...the power to do it,' while viewing Russia as an immediate and ongoing threat, and introduces the concept of 'integrated deterrence.'
• NATO 2010 Strategic Concept: — Adopted at the Lisbon Summit, this concept identified collective defense, crisis management, and cooperative security as NATO's core tasks. It addressed a broader range of threats, including cyber-attacks and terrorism, and referred to Russia as a 'strategic partner.'
• NATO 2022 Strategic Concept — Adopted at the Madrid Summit, this document identifies Russia as the 'most significant and direct threat' to Allied security. It reaffirms NATO's three core tasks and addresses the challenges posed by China for the first time.
• nato overview — hub for nato background, full document library, chronology, and related concepts
• NATO, the EU, and the Challenge of Hybrid Warfare — An analysis of the evolving nature of hybrid warfare in the context of the NATO-Russia standoff. By September 2025, both NATO and the EU have developed comprehensive strategies to counter hybrid threats, which have escalated from disinformation to coordinated physical and cyberattacks on critical infrastructure.
• Putin's Munich Speech (2007) — Speech by Vladimir Putin at the 43rd Munich Conference on Security Policy, criticizing a unipolar order and NATO enlargement; widely seen as an inflection point in Russia–West relations.
• Rome Declaration: NATO–Russia Relations – A New Quality (NATO–Russia Council) — At the 2002 Rome Summit, Allies and Russia created the NATO–Russia Council (NRC), moving from the 1997 Permanent Joint Council to a format for joint consultation and, where appropriate, joint decisions and actions on shared security concerns.
• Study on NATO Enlargement — This 1995 NATO study outlines the 'why and how' of admitting new members to the Alliance. It emphasizes the goal of enhancing stability and security across the Euro-Atlantic area and details the obligations of membership.
• The Black Sea Grain Initiative — An agreement brokered by the UN and Turkey in July 2022 to ensure the safe passage of grain and other foodstuffs from Ukrainian ports. The initiative was a critical humanitarian effort to address the global food crisis exacerbated by the war, though Russia ultimately withdrew from the deal in July 2023.
• The Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances — A 1994 agreement in which Russia, the UK, and the US provided security assurances to Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan in exchange for their accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The signatories committed to respect the sovereignty and existing borders of the newly independent states.
• The Concept of the Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (2023) — Approved in March 2023, this document outlines Russia's current foreign policy. It frames Russia as a unique 'state-civilization' and calls for the formation of a 'multipolar world order,' taking a highly confrontational stance towards the 'collective West.'
• The Minsk Agreements (I and II) — A series of agreements signed in 2014 and 2015 to stop the war in the Donbas region of Ukraine. Their failure to be fully implemented is a key element of the current conflict.
• The Suwałki Gap: A Strategic Analysis — An analysis of the Suwałki Gap, a critical vulnerability on NATO's eastern flank. This narrow land corridor is the only overland route connecting the Baltic states to the rest of the Alliance, making it a focal point of NATO's deterrence and defense planning.
• The Tagliavini Report (Summary) — A summary of the main findings of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia. This EU-commissioned report provides an in-depth analysis of the origins and course of the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, assigning responsibility to both sides for the escalation of the conflict.
• Vilnius Summit Communiqué (2023) — Issued in the midst of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, this communiqué details NATO's most recent decisions on strengthening deterrence and defense. It reaffirms that Ukraine's future is in NATO, removes the requirement for a Membership Action Plan, and establishes the NATO-Ukraine Council.
• Wales Summit Declaration (2014) — Issued in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea, this declaration marks a major turning point in NATO's post-Cold War posture. It suspended practical cooperation with Russia, created the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF), and called on allies to reverse the trend of declining defense budgets.
• Warsaw Summit Communiqué (2016) — This communiqué details the implementation of the decisions made at the 2014 Wales Summit. It announces the establishment of the Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) in the Baltic states and Poland, representing a significant shift in NATO's deterrence and defense posture.
• Western Sanctions on Russia (2014-2025) — A summary of the economic and financial sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States, the European Union, and other partners. These measures, implemented in response to the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and dramatically expanded after the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, target key sectors of the Russian economy.